Well, there is no question about it – PPAI’s Las Vegas Show is the event of the year, drawing huge crowds (over 15,800 pre-registered attendees) of visitors and exhibitors taking up what felt like enough space to occupy Texas. Everyone, of course, was in attendance, and the mood was positive, upbeat and productive – even on the last day when exhibitors are surviving on what I call the “ine” diet: pure adrenaline and caffeine.

It’s so funny to me how many people asked – with genuine concern I might add – “Are you allowed to be here?” “Does PPAI know you’re here?” “Are you upset you can’t get on the show floor?” etc.

It should be noted that – as they have done in the past – PPAI does indeed let ASI’s editors on the show floor as members of the press and could not be more gracious or hospitable to us.

And for those few of you who didn’t attend the show, what did you miss? Well, as PPAI’s President Steve Slagle said during the Media Appreciation luncheon held for members of the press, distributors would like the show extended by a day and with longer hours, whereas suppliers – not surprisingly – are just fine with the show’s schedule as is.

Some attendees I spoke with lamented the sheer size of the show, claiming that it’s impossible to walk the whole show thoroughly in three days.

Another recurring distributor comment was the perennial, “I didn’t see anything new….” Well, lucky for you, my friends, between myself, and my distributor pals Sharon Biernat from OnTime Promotions and Jill Albers from WorkFlowOne – both of whom scour the floor for new products on my behalf – we found some awesome new offerings (stay tuned for the upcoming issues of Advantages and Counselor to check them out).

One cool item is from The Source – (asi/40261) a combination drink container and water spritzer to beat the heat on hot days (see attached image). This is an ingenious idea unless, as Sharon pointed out, you’re “cocktailing” and forget that you’ve filled it with vodka and spray your face – in which case your eyes will sting with blinding pain and you will curse my name.

The big trend continues to be an emphasis on “green” and eco-friendly products. For those of you who thought this movement would be a flash in the frying pan, it – like price increases on products imported from China – are here to stay.